Cool

We were a bit daunted at the prospect of the heat in Bangkok, but after leaving Sydney yesterday in 40-degree weather (that's over 100F), having 30-degree weather here is actually a treat. Still, after walking around the Grand Palace and some shopping areas today, you could fry an egg on our heads. So imagine our surprise this afternoon to see the forecast for today was "cool". I think Basel may have only hit 30 degrees five times all summer, so if this is cool, I'd hate to know what it's like when it gets hot here. (Even better, one of the local papers not only said "cool", but also had a symbol of someone wearing a scarf...as opposed to northern Thailand, which was labeled "cold"--complete with a symbol of someone wearing a scarf and stocking cap--because the temperature was only expected to get into the high 20s.)

Incidentally, we've been here less than 24 hours and our impression is that Bangkok is sprawling, chaotic, congested, hot, loud...and excellent. We can already see where you have to take it in bite-sized pieces if you don't want to be completely overwhelmed, but so far, so good...